National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)

The NIMHD Mission is to support the advancement of scientific knowledge and improving the health of NIH-designated populations experiencing health disparities.

NIMHD scientific interests emphasize major diseases, conditions, and health-related behaviors that account for a large share of morbidity and mortality and for which substantial differences in risk, disease progression, treatment response, and outcomes are well documented. Priority areas focus on clinically actionable conditions; biologic, behavioral, and environmental mechanisms; early detection and prevention; treatment optimization; and implementation strategies that can improve measurable health outcomes. 

General topics of interest include but are not limited to:

• Cardiometabolic disease
• Cardiovascular disease and stroke
• Maternal health and pregnancy-related complications 
• Cancer prevention, early detection, treatment outcomes, and survivorship 
• Chronic kidney disease
• Asthma and chronic respiratory disease
• Dementia and vascular cognitive impairment
• HIV/AIDS
• Sickle cell disease and other high-burden genetic/hematologic conditions
• Mental illness and suicide prevention
• Tobacco use, substance use, and overdose
• Physical activity, sedentary behavior, and functional decline 
• Nutrition-related behaviors and food-linked chronic disease risk 
• Multimorbidity and high-need/high-cost patients

Cross-cutting scientific approaches include:

• Community engaged research
• Early detection, risk stratification, and predictive analytics
• Mechanistic and translational science 
• Adherence and treatment optimization
• Behavioral science
• Digital health and remote care
• Environmental and exposure science when linked to disease outcomes
• Clinical trials and pragmatic clinical trials
• Data science and real-world data
• Interdisciplinary team science
• Implementation science tied to clinical endpoints

Highlighted Topics